updated 06:40 am EST, Thu January 2, 2014

Price cut follows earlier discounts, Moto X flash sales

Motorola is making a bigger push for sales of its flagship Moto X in the United States, by giving it a permanent price cut. The change, coming after a number of similar discounts on the smartphone, comes at the same time as reports that its cheaper stablemate, the Moto G, is being sold at Best Buy for $100 on Verizon with no contract.

The Moto X will be priced at $399 from now on, according to the official Motorola blog. Rick Osterloh, senior vice president of product management at Motorola, said that the company has heard from "people who want a new premium smartphone at a reasonable price without having to wait for a contract upgrade," with the server crashes from its recent holiday flash sales apparently being a further sign of this.

Motorola Moto X

The Moto G originally reached the US on December 2 as an unlocked GSM edition, with the 8GB and 16GB models priced at $179 and $199 respectively. The LA Timesreports that Best Buy will be selling the Verizon model off-contract for $99.99, with Best Buy spokesperson Jonathan Sander advising "The phone is currently landing in stores and is available for sale as soon as it arrives." Sources ofDroid-Life have leaked an image claimed to be from an internal Best Buy memo, revealing that the Verizon Moto G has a "hard street date" of January 9th, with inventory in stores not to be sold until that date.